Photos of Israeli soldiers desecrating Saudi flag draw ire on social media

A photo of a group of Israeli soldiers standing on a Saudi flag while posing for a picture triggered outrage on social media, with many netizens condemning the act as Islamophobic and indicative of bias against Muslims.

The controversial picture, which went viral, was shared on multiple social media accounts, alongside other similar anti-Muslim posts reportedly shared by Israeli soldiers on their Instagram accounts.

The picture was first shared on June 24 by an account named Tamer on X.

“A group of Israeli soldiers in the Paratroopers Brigade trample the Saudi flag and the Shahada (Islamic declaration of faith) during the ground invasion of Khan Yunis,” the post read.

“This is what a soldier posted on his Instagram account. This is Israeli filth and contempt,” Tamer added.

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مجموعة من الجنود الاسرائيليين في لواء المظليين تدوس العلم السعودي وشهادة التوحيد ، اثناء الاجتياح البري لمدينة خانيونس .

هذا ما نشره جندي على حسابه على انستغرام .

تلك هي القذارة والحقارة الاسرائيلية .. pic.twitter.com/nZ7qaWBeFN

— Tamer | تامر (@tamerqdh) June 24, 2024

Tamer later shared another post on X, revealing the accounts of the Israeli soldiers, who posted the pictures, and highlighting their other anti-Palestinian posts on Instagram.

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خسئت لكل شخص يشكّك في تامر ومصادره .
لست انا من يبني تغريداته على الاكاذيب والاحتيال وخداع الناس .

اشارك معكم حساب الجندي الارهابي القذر والحقير . https://t.co/YT1WezeqYn pic.twitter.com/f90HJcjz6n

— Tamer | تامر (@tamerqdh) June 24, 2024

However, the authenticity of the image cannot be independently verified.

A pro-Palestinian account on X claimed that the soldier who shared the post deleted it and switched his account to private after the picture went viral.

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Israeli occupation soldiers posted pictures of themselves stomping on the Saudi Arabian flag during the Khan Yunis invasion several weeks ago.

After the images went viral, the soldiers changed their names and set their social media accounts to private. pic.twitter.com/xdjRni8yx9

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) June 25, 2024

“Not only is this an insult to our brothers and sisters in Saudi Arabia, but it also insults two billion Muslims since the flag contains the name of God and Prophet Muhammad [PBUH],” an X user commented.

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A picture of a bunch of Israeli occupation soldiers trampling on Saudi Arabia’s flag. Not only is this an insult to our brothers and sisters in Suadi Arabia, but it also insults two billion Muslims since the flag contains the name of God and Prophet Mohammad pic.twitter.com/BSW4tRSNAF

— Khalil Sayegh (@KhalilJeries) June 24, 2024

A pro-Israel account shared the controversial picture with the caption, “Death to Hamas,” indicating a failure to recognise the difference between the flags of Hamas and Saudi Arabia.

“Why are they so uneducated? They’re stepping on Saudi Arabia’s flag, thinking it’s Hamas. And yet, they claim they’re taking out Hamas in Gaza when they don’t even know who or what Hamas is. Their goal is genocide. Not Hamas, not self-defense. Genocide,” a pro-Palestine X user said.

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Why are they so uneducated? They’re stepping on Saudi Arabia’s flag, thinking it’s Hamas. AND YET, they claim they’re taking out Hamas in Gaza when they don’t even know who or what Hamas is.

Their goal is genocide. Not Hamas, not self defense. Genocide. https://t.co/WL5AqGZByK

— 🇲🇻إشان🇵🇸 (@m_ishan10) June 25, 2024

There has been no official response from the Saudi government so far.

The possibility of normalising ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia remains on the table, with Saudi officials repeatedly stating that any such agreement is contingent on a ceasefire in Gaza and the acknowledgment of Palestinian statehood.